COLLINGWOOD coach Nathan Buckley has described the come from behind win over West Coast as one of the most enjoyable of his 131-game coaching career.
He said the players deserved to enjoy the victory because they had earned it, having shown a will to win and compete in all but the three losses between round 14 to 16 that saw the Magpies tumble out of finals contention.
The win was Collingwood's seventh for the season, pushing it up to 13th spot on the ladder, two games out of the top eight with five games remaining.
"This [win] for the players that played. They earned it," Buckley said.
Five talking points: Collingwood v West Coast
The Magpies had to work hard for the win after losing Darcy Moore and Travis Varcoe to injury by midway through the third quarter and then dropping 24 points behind after the Eagles kicked goals a minute either side of three quarter time.
However, Brodie Grundy put in a brilliant solo performance in the ruck and Steele Sidebottom led the team from the front, tackling ferociously when the game was on the line.
WATCH Nathan Buckley's full post-match press conference
Will Hoskin-Elliott won five contested possessions in the last quarter while Jordan De Goey kicked four second-half goals.
Buckley said De Goey was looking comfortable as a high forward and would eventually earn a more prominent midfield role.
"I think he is tracking well after a hiccup earlier in the year," Buckley said.
WATCH De Goey's second-half heroics
Buckley said he feared that the Eagles final goal of the third quarter, coming with just seconds remaining after Levi Greenwood spilled the ball loose and the Eagles pounced would flatten them.
But he was rapt they did not throw the towel in.
"It could have scuttled us and could have ripped the guts out of us but the belief in the players was still strong and we were able to hang in there," Buckley said.
"We brought good energy and good heat from the first siren to the last."
That energy saw the Magpies beat the Eagles by 22 in contested ball in the final quarter and win the inside 50 count 13 to eight.
Most importantly they kicked 5.4 to the Eagles 1.2 in the final quarter, kicking the final five goals of the game.
"We just battled away and when we improved our efficiency a little we got reward," Buckley said.
